Abadchen orbadkhn (Yiddish:בּדחן, pronounced and sometimes writtenbatkhn) is a type ofAshkenazic Jewish professional wedding entertainer, poet, sacred clown, andmaster of ceremonies originating in Eastern Europe, with a history dating back to at least the sixteenth or seventeenth century. Thebadkhn was an indispensable part of the traditional Jewish wedding in Europe who guided the bride and groom through the stages of the ceremony, acted as master of ceremonies, and sang to the bride, groom and in-laws with the accompaniment ofklezmer musicians. They also had a traditional role on holidays such asHanukkah orPurim. Today they are primarily found inHasidic communities.
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There is a long history of entertainers at Jewish weddings dating back to theTalmudic era.[1][2] The traditional role of the Eastern European badkhn evolved from older Medieval and Early Modern Jewish wedding entertainers, such as thelets (לץ) ormarshelik (Yiddish:מאַרשעליק,romanized: marshélik, sometimes writtenmarshalik), taking on a recognizable new form in seventeenth centuryPoland.[3][4][5] (Some sources may use the terms badkhn,lets andmarshelik interchangeably, whereas others treat them as distinct.[6][7]) The earlier type ofmarshelik guided the ceremonies of the wedding in a more serious manner, but the badkhn turned the role into that a of a religiously-informed, moralistic comedian.[3][6] In this role they also drew on YiddishMinstrels andMaggids who had been traveling entertainers in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.[8] The tradition spread across Jewish Eastern Europe and seems to have reached its height of popularity during the nineteenth century.[3]
With emigration from Europe, including toOttoman Palestine, starting in the early nineteenth century and later to theUnited States, the practice spread to other parts of the world.[3] With the rise of urbanization and theHaskalah, the role of the badkhn (and their partners, the klezmer musicians) declined in importance in Jewish life in the second half of the nineteenth century.[9] Some modern cultural critics in the early Twentieth century even disdained their art form, such asSaul M. Ginsburg and Pesach Marek who called the badkhn a "mere mood manipulator at weddings" who "richly deserved the low status accorded to him in society".[10]Judah Leib Cahan said that their arcane humor contributed to the "dry atmosphere" of petit-bourgeois Jewish life.[10] On the other hand, some late nineteenth century badkhns were themselves influenced by the enlightenment and made its ideals a part of their performances.[3]
The modern American badkhn tradition was largely reconstituted and developed in Hasidic communities afterWorld War II.[3] Rav Shlomo Yaakov Gelbman (1953–2015) was another modern badkhn and historian in theSatmar community.[11] In this new context, the role of the badkhn is more limited than it traditionally was in Europe, and is often performed alongside a single keyboardist rather than a klezmer orchestra.[3] The focus of their performances has also shifted from the bride towards the groom.[3]
Traditionally, the badkhn was hired as a professional or semi-professional entertainer for Jewish weddings and other ritual occasions. He would not work alone, but would work with klezmer musicians, who themselves were a kind of professional Jewish entertainer.[3][12] Some badkhns also worked as klezmer musicians in other contexts, and hereditary families of both professions often intermarried.[3] Badkhns always had a fairly rigorous Jewish education in order to fulfill their role in the wedding; many were alsoRabbis.[3]
In the traditional wedding, the badkhn acted as a master of ceremonies, comedian, religious guide, and various other functions.[3] He was expected to generate energy for a party before and after the ceremony, and also to bring guests along in the transition to a more serious tone immediately before the ceremony.[13][7] He would speak and sing inCouplets, weaving in references to theTalmud andTanach as well as making sarcastic commentary on contemporary life and doing impressions.[3][13][5][14] He would also direct the ceremonies and organize the collection of money at various stages of the wedding.[15] It was also possible for a particularly rich wedding to hire multiple badkhns.[5]
The role of the badkhn was also to guide the bride and groom through the various ritual and customary stages of the traditional wedding. These often began with a procession of the wedding party through the streets to the home of the bride, with the accompaniment of the klezmer band and occasionally the badkhn.[16] A further procession would take place later in the morning to the place where the wedding was to take place.[16] The next stages often focused on the bride. In various places this phase would be calledBazetsn di kale (seating of the bride),kale bazingn (singing for the bride)kale badekns (bridal veiling), while the badkhn sang couplets punctuated by accompaniment by the klezmer musicians.[3][14][16] Often these couplets would include descriptions of a wife's responsibilities combined with phrases such as "kalenyu, kalenyu, veyn, veyn, veyn" (oh dear little bride, weep, weep weep).[16]
After that, the klezmer band would escort the couple to the courtyard of thesynagogue for the legal part of the ceremony.[14][16]Another stages was themazltov ormitzvah dance where the badkhn called up each woman present to embrace the bride,[14] had men symbolically dance with the bride via a handkerchief, or other ritual forms to announce honored guests.[16] The badkhn also sang more lighthearted couplets during the wedding feast.[16]
Aside from weddings, badkhns have also traditionally had roles in other ceremonies or holidays, such asHanukkah orPurim, and forBris (circumcision).[1][2][5] On Purim in particular, Badkhns were known to perform in short plays or performances.[3]
Today the tradition of badkhns exists mainly in Hasidic communities. Current performers include Motty Ilowitz, Yankel Miller[17] and Yoel Lebowits.[18]
Various forms of modern Jewish entertainment which arose in the Nineteenth century were created by former badkhns, or drew on aspects of the tradition, includingYiddish song,Yiddish poetry,Yiddish Theatre, andBroderzingers.[5][3] The so-called "father of Yiddish poetry",Eliakum Zunser, was a former badkhn, as were many of the early actors inAbraham Goldfaden's theatre troupes as well as coffeehouse singers who are now long forgotten.[3][13][19] Satirical Yiddish songs of the late Nineteenth century also drew on the tradition of the badkhn, especially in their use and parody of liturgical music,[20] and many pioneering Yiddish-language recording artists of the early Twentieth century were former badkhns, includingSolomon Smulewitz andFrank Seiden.[3] As well, an early genre of Yiddish-language recorded music involved parodies of the badkhn's traditional performances by Yiddish Theatre actors such asGus Goldstein,[21] Julius Guttman,[22]Molly Picon,[23] H. I. Reissmann,[24] and the aforementioned Seiden and Smulewitz.[25] Later the traditions of Jewish comedy and vaudeville in theBorscht Belt also drew on aspects of the badkhn's performances.[3]
In the world of Jewish literature, badkhns often appeared as romantic or colourful figures, including in the works of literary figures such asLev Levanda, Grigory Isaakovich Bogrov, Ezeldel Kotik,Avrom Ber Gotlober,Pauline Wengeroff andAbraham Cahan.[3]
With theKlezmer revival in the late 1970s and early 1980s, there was some renewed interest in badkhn-style singing among klezmer bands. The revival bandKapelye included songs in that style on their albums Future And Past (1981) and Kapelye's Chicken (1987).[26] The groupBudowitz, in their attempt to recreate a Nineteenth century Jewish wedding sound, also included badkhn-style performances on their albumsMother Tongue (1997) andWedding without a Bride (2000).[27]
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Cyrus Adler andH. G. Enelow andJoseph Jacobs (1901–1906)."Badhan". InSinger, Isidore; et al. (eds.).The Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls.